Nat Zunkel spoke inspiring words at McHenry’s East Campus cafeteria to football players he was meeting for the first time.

Zunkel, whose sparkling record in seven seasons at Mercer County in Aledo added instant credibility, laid out goals for his new program: creating a culture of success and ownership; developing an overwhelming athletic presence, fortifying life-lasting relationships; and, finally, winning.

“We will win. We will win,” Zunkel said. “I’m telling you this, you will have success every single day. You will learn to compete on a completely different level. I don’t want to move my family here to finish 1-8.”

Upstairs at East, the District 156 school board had just approved the hiring of Zunkel as new football coach and teacher, although the teaching position is yet to be determined. Downstairs, athletic director Barry Burmeister was introducing Zunkel to players and parents.

Zunkel was 65-16 in seven seasons at Mercer County and won the 2012 Class 2A state championship with the Golden Eagles. Zunkel, clad in a black blazer, tan slacks and an orange tie, displayed his mission statement and plans for a program that has been absent from the playoffs the past eight seasons after making it 20 consecutive years before that.

Zunkel, who is assistant principal and AD at Mercer County, was eager to move back to the Chicago area because he and his wife, Sandy, grew up here. He first learned of McHenry’s football success at Illinois Wesleyan, where former McHenry lineman Cam Nystrom was his teammate.

“Barry did a great job recruiting me and to see the potential and see what’s coming up,” Zunkel said. “Knowing that tradition is here and it just needs to be unearthed is what attracted me.”

Burmeister narrowed his list to two finalists but knew Zunkel was his pick early in the hiring process. He brought Zunkel to McHenry three times before Tuesday.

“It was just the way he handled himself,” Burmeister said. “You can tell he’s hungry. He’s looking for that, he has an appetite for success. He doesn’t dwell on his past accomplishments, he’s looking forward to his next meal, which is here at McHenry. He’s going to make this successful.”

The Warriors won a lot under former coach Mike Noll from 1988 through 2003. Chad Hetlet took them to the playoffs two years after Noll, then Tim Beagle’s teams made the playoffs in 2006 and 2007. But the Warriors did not make the playoffs in Beagle’s last four seasons and in four seasons under Dave D’Angelo.

Zunkel made a favorable first impression with his new players.

“I’m insanely excited,” junior running back Gio Purpura said. “I’m so pumped to be here and meet him. His expectations for us are through the roof. I’ve never had those put on us, and I’m ready for it.”

Junior linebacker Kyle Lim was equally excited.

“I’m very impressed with the man,” Lim said. “He seems to know what he’s doing and he comes from a winning tradition, so that’s going to help us a lot. The mindset he has of getting people in the weight room, keeping people accountable, just making sure we have good leadership qualities across the program, it’s really going to help us.”

Zunkel urged the Warriors to own their 1-8 record from last season and let it burn with them through this offseason. Part of his slideshow had B, C and D, which he explained as “Blame. Complain. Defend.”

“That is the biggest problem with young people,” Zunkel said. “ ‘It’s not my fault, it’s his fault.’ You have to own it and be willing to do something about it. If that record doesn’t burn you, something’s wrong, because it burns me.”

Burmeister received numerous applications for the position, but said none came from within the district. Beagle and D’Angelo both had previously been assistants with the Warriors.

“[Zunkel’s] football knowledge, his football I.Q. is tremendous,” Burmeister said. “And he has the character that is equal to our past coaches, that’s another thing we were looking for.”

Zunkel gave the players a sample of their offense, a hybrid between spread and pro style, with some option mixed in. He plans to run a 4-2-5 pressure-based defense, a system that helped the Golden Eagles allow less than a touchdown per game when they won state in 2012.

“It will take an overwhelming amount of work,” Zunkel said. “I tried to make that known to the kids that it’s not just going to happen by accident. There are a lot of pieces to the puzzle. I need 100 percent buy-in from the kids, first and foremost. Then everything will get better from there. There’s just an incredible amount of work [to do] and I’m happy to get started with it.”

The Nat Zunkel File

• Grew up in Elmhurst and attended York High School, where he played football. • Played college football at NCAA Division III Illinois Wesleyan.

• Has 67-23 career record for one season at Mattoon and seven at Mercer County.

• Won Class 2A state championship in 2012 with Mercer County, made semifinal the next season.

• Zunkel, 38, and his wife Sandy have three sons: Paul (13, seventh grade), Luke (11, sixth) and Williams (10, fifth).